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James O'Brien

Hockey Daily Dose

Concussive blows

At this point, Erik Karlsson’s season-ending injury remains the biggest loss of the 2013 fantasy season. Chances are, that remains the largest stomach punch landed, but Friday unfortunately presented a contender.

In one thunderous collision with Erik Gudbranson, Evgeni Malkin owners saw an easy first-round pick (frequently a number one overall guy) enjoy something in common with his equally paid teammate Sidney Crosby: he got a concussion.

As is usual with brain injuries, the true damage is cloudy. (Sadly, it appears Geno’s short-term memory is too; that’s one of the symptoms the Penguins finally acknowledged late on Sunday after being wishy-washy about the whole thing earlier on.)

What we do know is that Malkin won’t be available for the Penguins three-game road trip, which begins on Tuesday. Now, there have been times when players hop on the later portion of such a tour, but it’s doubtful this is the case. Really, if he’s back by their next game in Pittsburgh (on March 4 against the Tampa Bay Lightning), then we’d all let out a sigh of relief.* It could very well last for a long time … we’ll just have to wait and see.

If the injury is fairly long-lasting, it would obviously be a significant blow to the Pittsburgh Penguins’ fortunes. Yet in a weird way, one could argue that fantasy owners might get hit as hard (in a fake way) because Dan Bylsma & Co. have been through this rodeo before. From your perspective, you lost the very first piece of your foundation.

Malkin has been a little disappointing, at least on the scale of a guy who might have gone first overall. About the only thing to root for today (or soon) is for Malkin to be placed on the injured reserve so you can make some adjustments. That could happen since the team’s just-about ruled him out for the trip. We’ll find out soon enough.

There is one other thing to consider: other Penguins forwards. Let’s take a quick look.

OTHERS

Sidney Crosby - He’ll be fine, aside from maybe a marginal loss on the power play. The guy has six three-point games in the month of February. Crazy.

James Neal - While Crosby’s linemates have steadily been Chris Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis, Neal has (quite logically) remained with the guy who helped him become a power forward who was drafted in the first 2-3 rounds. (Note: I drafted him in a deep league second round.)

Neal should be fine. One of the only guys in the NHL who can send him pillow-soft one-timers not named Evgeni Malkin happens to be Sidney Crosby. Heck, Crosby might be ecstatic to have a guy who can finish his chances on the kind of scale he hasn’t seen since Marian Hossa interned with his team one summer. It’s more likely that one of Crosby’s other wingers will lose out.

Chris Kunitz - I don’t expect Kunitz to be the odd man out, although honestly, it could be both him and Dupuis in a rotation the way line changes work. (Neal could actually get bumped if they need to spread the offense out, actually.)

Even if he does, Kunitz has been a month-plus steal. While his PIMs are marginally disappointing, he’s still getting hits and has seven goals and 21 points. His propensity to do the dirty work makes me think he’ll be the one running shotgun with Crosby and Neal more often.

Pascal Dupuis - Considering the fact that Kunitz has nine more points this season, it’s reasonable to assume my inkling is pretty strong. While he’s less bombastic about it, he can be a dirty work guy too, so he’s got a shot.

Again, this is speculation, so don’t jump off a pier based on this (and one game of evidence).

Take a tour of the rest of the league’s business after the jump.

* - Unless he comes back too soon, of course. Then we’ll utter a wail of dismay, aside from a few people with an unhealthy hatred for the Penguins.

At this point, Erik Karlsson’s season-ending injury remains the biggest loss of the 2013 fantasy season. Chances are, that remains the largest stomach punch landed, but Friday unfortunately presented a contender.

In one thunderous collision with Erik Gudbranson, Evgeni Malkin owners saw an easy first-round pick (frequently a number one overall guy) enjoy something in common with his equally paid teammate Sidney Crosby: he got a concussion.

As is usual with brain injuries, the true damage is cloudy. (Sadly, it appears Geno’s short-term memory is too; that’s one of the symptoms the Penguins finally acknowledged late on Sunday after being wishy-washy about the whole thing earlier on.)

What we do know is that Malkin won’t be available for the Penguins three-game road trip, which begins on Tuesday. Now, there have been times when players hop on the later portion of such a tour, but it’s doubtful this is the case. Really, if he’s back by their next game in Pittsburgh (on March 4 against the Tampa Bay Lightning), then we’d all let out a sigh of relief.* It could very well last for a long time … we’ll just have to wait and see.

If the injury is fairly long-lasting, it would obviously be a significant blow to the Pittsburgh Penguins’ fortunes. Yet in a weird way, one could argue that fantasy owners might get hit as hard (in a fake way) because Dan Bylsma & Co. have been through this rodeo before. From your perspective, you lost the very first piece of your foundation.

Malkin has been a little disappointing, at least on the scale of a guy who might have gone first overall. About the only thing to root for today (or soon) is for Malkin to be placed on the injured reserve so you can make some adjustments. That could happen since the team’s just-about ruled him out for the trip. We’ll find out soon enough.

There is one other thing to consider: other Penguins forwards. Let’s take a quick look.

OTHERS

Sidney Crosby - He’ll be fine, aside from maybe a marginal loss on the power play. The guy has six three-point games in the month of February. Crazy.

James Neal - While Crosby’s linemates have steadily been Chris Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis, Neal has (quite logically) remained with the guy who helped him become a power forward who was drafted in the first 2-3 rounds. (Note: I drafted him in a deep league second round.)

Neal should be fine. One of the only guys in the NHL who can send him pillow-soft one-timers not named Evgeni Malkin happens to be Sidney Crosby. Heck, Crosby might be ecstatic to have a guy who can finish his chances on the kind of scale he hasn’t seen since Marian Hossa interned with his team one summer. It’s more likely that one of Crosby’s other wingers will lose out.

Chris Kunitz - I don’t expect Kunitz to be the odd man out, although honestly, it could be both him and Dupuis in a rotation the way line changes work. (Neal could actually get bumped if they need to spread the offense out, actually.)

Even if he does, Kunitz has been a month-plus steal. While his PIMs are marginally disappointing, he’s still getting hits and has seven goals and 21 points. His propensity to do the dirty work makes me think he’ll be the one running shotgun with Crosby and Neal more often.

Pascal Dupuis - Considering the fact that Kunitz has nine more points this season, it’s reasonable to assume my inkling is pretty strong. While he’s less bombastic about it, he can be a dirty work guy too, so he’s got a shot.

Again, this is speculation, so don’t jump off a pier based on this (and one game of evidence).

Take a tour of the rest of the league’s business after the jump.

* - Unless he comes back too soon, of course. Then we’ll utter a wail of dismay, aside from a few people with an unhealthy hatred for the Penguins.

MORE BIG POTENTIAL LOSSES

The Chicago Blackhawks extended their points streak to be the lone record holder at 17 on Friday (then 18 on Sunday), while greatly hurting a team they faced in the playoffs the last time they looked unstoppable: the San Jose Sharks. Ryane Clowe was so enraged by an Andrew Shaw hit that he seemingly jumped the boards before a full line change and started a fight. We’ll find out today if he’ll get what amounts to a fantasy death penalty: a 10-game suspension.

Honestly, even if it’s somehow just 5-6, that’s probably enough in a shortened season for a guy who’s clearly struggling. It’s not like you can stash him on the IR.

Shaw saw no supplemental discipline for the role he played in that Friday exchange, and to add insult to San Jose’s injury, scored the GWG for the ‘Hawks on Sunday. Oh yeah, the good times kept going for Chicago, as Marian Hossa and Corey Crawford returned to action.

Crawford had a 28-save shutout, leaving Joel Quenneville to be ambivalent about who will start for the team on Monday. It could be telling if Crawford gets the nod over Ray Emery in a back-to-back (or merely a reward for a guy who managed a goose egg.)

Speaking of not getting fined or suspended, Max Pacioretty’s retaliatory boarding hit on Ryan McDonagh will go unpunished. It remains to be seen how bad McDonagh’s injury is, but with Dan Girardi hobbled, Michael Del Zotto hurting and Rick Nash possibly concussed, the New York Rangers might be in big trouble.

Finally, big Dustin Byfuglien was hobbled on Sunday. No word on how bad things are, but the versatile fantasy blueliner has already missed five games with ailments, so this is worrisome.

ON FIRE

Scott Hartnell returned, but maybe that won’t be such a bad thing by climbing Philadelphia Flyers Jakub Voracek and Wayne Simmonds. Voracek keeps producing strong offense while Simmonds is putting up numbers, but remains rambunctious, with two (!) Gordie Howe hat tricks in one week.

This weekend spotlighted something that must be said: John Tavares is one of the best players in the NHL. With five points in the last three games, he’s now at 25 on the season. He also has a whopping 76 shots on goal. Sweet.

Speaking of heat seekers, Evander Kane has a point in seven straight games. If that isn’t awesome enough, he managed to stuff 15 PIM in there, too. He’s blossoming into the star many of us were hoping he’d become.

One more jump: guys who are getting it together and quick notes.

HEATING UP

There were some promising signs of disappointing players possibly turning things around this weekend, too.

How can you not start this section with Alex Ovechkin, even if his results might be a little misleading? Ovi notched his first hat trick since 2011 on Saturday, plus he had an assist. The misleading side: he didn’t score a single point in the three games before Saturday’s breakout. The promising part? He’s starting to build back to that shot-taking monster from before; he had seven SOG on Saturday and has 23 in the last four contests. The Washington Capitals seem like they're going in a more positive direction, so this is good stuff.

I brought some attention to Jarome Iginla’s nine-shot game on Feb. 20, and it seems like the aging power forward might be getting it together. He has four points in his last three games, including two goals last night.

Maybe Anaheim’s old fogies and Viktor Fasth might slow down, but the good news is that Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf are on a roll. Finally. You’d think the two guys would roar into the season as contract year guys, but both have had tendencies to be a little streaky every now and then.

Taylor Hall got a slap on the wrist in a two-game suspension. It’ll be done by tonight’s game … Anders Lindback hasn’t been putting up great numbers anyway, but he had a rough weekend … Jack Johnson was placed on the IR with an upper-body injury … Martin Brodeur was a late subtraction from the New Jersey Devils lineup on Sunday, but he indicated it was back soreness, nothing big … Dave Bolland missed Sunday’s contest but it sounds like his injury isn’t too bad, either … Roberto Luongo enjoyed wild highs (a Friday shutout) and drastic lows (allowing a ridiculous eight goals on Sunday) this weekend … Don’t be surprised if Stephen Weiss gets traded. He only received two brief third period shifts in Sunday’s 4-1 Florida loss … Speaking of that game, Milan Lucic probably managed to swing a few leagues with his 14 PIM; his goal probably didn’t hurt, either.